Culture Jammers: Dean Sewell
A covert movement with overt messages gets exposed at the Museum of Sydney.
Overview
In 2003 two men painted NO WAR in big, friendly letters across the sail of the Opera House. Jailed, fined and applauded by Opera House staff, the two men — Will Saunders and Dave Burgess — were essentially 'culture jamming', a movement that interferes with public space the same way pirate radio jams public frequencies. Just as acrobatic in action as Saunders and Burgess, were the Sydney-based group the Lonely Station. Moran-winning photographer Dean Sewell got to know them over a number of years, at first only covering their actions. Culture Jammers, documents his transformation from observer to participant as he followed the Lonely Station's collective co-opting of commercial locations into art and politics.
From the guerrilla plastering of art on Sydney's new Louis Vuitton shop, to a hills hoist planted in Sydney Park for political purposes, Sewell's photos show you this urban art action from the lens of a man in the middle of it. And if a window into a covert movement with overt messages to sell isn't enough for you, the Museum will be putting on an Art and Politics of Culture Jamming forum which presents you not only to Sewell, but a who's who of recent Sydney culture jammers: Lonely Stationer Neal Funnell, Opera House painter Dave Burgess and Peter Vogel from the culture jamming progenitor group BUGAUP.
The forum will be held at the Museum on Sunday February 12 (11am, $30/25), Dean Sewell will give an artist's talk Sunday March 11, alongside curator Inara Walden (11am, free with museum entry).
Image: Dean Sewell.
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